PESHAWAR, Pakistan -- Tribal elders and shopkeepers in northwestern Pakistan have banned women from shopping in bazaars without a male relative present.
Local clerics in the Karak district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Province have urged shopkeepers not to allow women to enter stores and markets without a male relative accompanying them.
The clerics said the presence of unaccompanied women in bazaars spreads "vulgarity and spoils men's fasting during Ramadan."
It was not clear if the new restriction would be lifted after Ramadan ends.
Karak district police officer Attiqullah Wazir said the police had no intention of enforcing the ban on women shopping alone.
Local clerics in the Karak district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Province have urged shopkeepers not to allow women to enter stores and markets without a male relative accompanying them.
The clerics said the presence of unaccompanied women in bazaars spreads "vulgarity and spoils men's fasting during Ramadan."
It was not clear if the new restriction would be lifted after Ramadan ends.
Karak district police officer Attiqullah Wazir said the police had no intention of enforcing the ban on women shopping alone.
